12 die in Sokoto auto crash

Twelve persons died following a road accident that occurred at Kasarawa in Wamakko Local Government Area of Sokoto State.

According to witnesses, the accident involved a trailer loaded with donkeys and people who were said to be from Rabah Local Government Area of the state and heading towards Niger State, where the passengers were to be engaged as casual workers.

It was gathered that the driver of the trailer lost control of the vehicle, causing it to skid off the road before it somersaulted.

The deceased were said to have died on the spot while several of their colleagues sustained various degrees of injury.

The injured ones were taken to Usman Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital and Sokoto Specialist Hospital, where they are receiving treatments.

Speaking to Daily Trust, the Chief Medical Director of the Specialist Hospital, Dr. Nuhu Maishanu, confirmed receipt of 34 victims including four corpses.

“Thirty four were brought here, including four bodies. We treated and discharged some. But eight persons are still on admission and we referred another four with severe head injuries to the Teaching Hospital for treatment,” he said.

Maishanu added that all the victims were being treated free of charge.

The spokesman of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in the state, Aliyu Kanya, who confirmed the accident, said the driver lost control of the vehicle while trying to negotiate a sharp bend along the Sultan Abubakar III international airport road around 3am of Saturday.

He cautioned drivers to always be guided by road signs which indicate dangerous bends on roads.